Preview

Young Goodman Brown Analysis

Good Essays
Open Document
Open Document
769 Words
Grammar
Grammar
Plagiarism
Plagiarism
Writing
Writing
Score
Score
Young Goodman Brown Analysis
Some people read stories and see them all completely different with all completely different meanings. In a way that is correct, they are all different, however; though this analysis it will be shown that“The Lottery” and “Young Goodman Brown” are very similar through different literary elements of fiction. In “The Lottery” and “Young Goodman Brown,” authors Shirley Jackson and Nathaniel Hawthorne employ point of view, setting and conflict to show similarities between these two very different stories.

The point of view in “Young Goodman Brown” and “The Lottery” is a third person perspective was used to portray a person looking in on the scene. A third person perspective is when there is a person looking at the story and it seems as if they are there watching; however, it is not normally defined on who is telling the story. In “Young Goodman Brown,” a limited omniscient narrator was used during parts of his walk but it is mostly third person objective. In “Young Goodman Brown”, Hawthorne an example of the third person objective is “His head being turned back, he passed a crook of the road again, beheld the figure of a man
…show more content…
“Bill Hutchinson went over to his wife and forced the slip of paper out of her hand. It had a black spot on it, the black spot Mr. Summers had made the night before with a heavy pencil in the coal-company office. Bill Hutchinson held it up and there was a stir in the crowd.” (Jackson 221) that was an example from “The Lottery” and it is when they picked the name they were going to stone and everyone realized what was really going to happen. In Young Goodman Brown, this is when he realized his wife was gone and this is when he turned from good to evil very fast. “”Faith!” shouted Goodman Brown, in a voice of agony and desperation; and the echoes of the forest mocked him, crying—“Faith! Faith!” as if bewildered wretches were seeking her all through the wilderness.”(Hawthorne

You May Also Find These Documents Helpful

  • Good Essays

    In this paper, we are going to carry out a reflexion about the characters in two stories : “The Destructors,“ by Graham Greene and “The Lottery,“ by Shirley Jackson. We are going to identify the main characters and point out their qualities, emotions, attitudes, and behaviors. In this way, we will compare the two stories based upon their characters.…

    • 870 Words
    • 4 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Good Essays

    The central idea of the Young Goodman Brown is epic struggle between the goodness and evilness. Throughout the story, Goodman Brown is fighting with good and bad. He stated journey with an old man which he knew is a start of evil deeds, but he has to do it, no other choice. He is very religious and was guilty of what he is up to. “We have been a race of honest men and good Christians since the days of the martyrs; and shall I be the first of the name of Brown that ever took this path and kept.” He is confused and don’t which path is right and wrong for him. He started believing that everyone has evil inside them.…

    • 496 Words
    • 2 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Good Essays

    Overall Shirley Jackson discusses the movement of the setting, the unusual foreshadowing, and the outermost symbolism in "The Lottery" to give an overall point of view of the story.…

    • 789 Words
    • 4 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Good Essays

    Introduced in the fifteenth century, characterization is still used today in most movies, books, and theaters to make stories unique and add a certain edge. In “The Lottery”, a small town holds a drawing every year; the ‘winner’ gets stoned. No one questions this practice because they are very faithful in their tradition and have never been taught otherwise. “The Lady and the Tiger” also includes a very chilling mood where the King determines if an accused person is guilty or innocent depending on what door they choose. The individual will either be eaten by a tiger or married in front of an arena. The characters are very well developed and detailed which makes the stories much more interesting. The short stories “The Lottery” by Shirley Jackson…

    • 738 Words
    • 3 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Good Essays

    In The Lottery, Mrs. Hutchinson has lost and is about to be stoned to death. Mrs. Delacroix, who up until this point some may see as a friend of Mrs. Hutchinson, “…selected a stone so large she had to pick it up with both hands and turned to Mrs. Dunbar. “Come on,” she said, “Hurry up.”” (The Human Experience, pp 356 line 74) This betrayal, in light of the illogical nature of the lottery, is heinous and barbaric. In The Yellow Wallpaper, when the main characters mental faculties diminish and she views herself to be the identity trapped in the wall, she exclaims “I’ve got out at last” (The Human Experience, pp740 line 261). Both of these situations show that when logic fails, things that may be frightening…

    • 457 Words
    • 2 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Good Essays

    Several questions must be addressed while comparing the point of view between the two short stories "The Lottery" by Shirley Jackson and "The Lesson" by Toni Bambara. The narrative point of view is defined by who is telling the story. In order to determine which points of view each story was written in, the following questions must be answered. Who is the narrator in the story? How much information does the narrator give the reader about the characters in the story? How much does the narrator really know? To be able to compare and contrast the points of view in each story, the reader must be able to answer the questions at hand.…

    • 957 Words
    • 4 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Good Essays

    Poetry and short stories are a different type of literature yet they share similar elements that are portrayed in both. Most commonly they are setting, conflict, theme and tone. The Unknown Citizen, written by W.H Auden, is a poem that will be compared with the lottery, written by Shirley Jackson. Both, the short story and poem, share 2 literature devices in common. They exhibit Irony and symbolism within them. The usage of both will be compared to acknowledge the similarities between the two different literature styles. Although they may not fall into the same genre, both the Unknown Citizen and The Lottery share common literature devices to provide…

    • 688 Words
    • 3 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Good Essays

    It is evident that from the beginning of “Young Goodman Brown,” Brown has decided upon himself the path he must take. In this case, it is the path of evil; “My journey, as thou callest it, forth and back again, must needs be done ‘twixt now and sunrise.” Such a statement establishes the intention behind Brown’s journey. Multiple instances indicate evil conquering good. It is mentioned in the story that Goodman “felt himself justified in making more haste on his present evil purpose.” Before the journey begins Brown already indicates that this journey will not bring forth good. Although, there are some remarks that reveal Brown’s shift toward good like his hesitance towards carrying on the path- “too far! Too far! We have been a race of honest…

    • 379 Words
    • 2 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Good Essays

    Nathaniel Hawthorne’s short story, “Young Goodman Brown” was published in 1835. The story takes place in late seventeenth century Massachusetts, a time when the Puritan faith was the central religion. This historical context was a time when people felt extremely passionate about their faith. This was especially true with the Puritan faith and the strict way it was practiced. Hawthorne narrates the story of a Puritan man who develops a deep emotional shift in his perception, as a result of seeing people close to him behaving in ways that significantly contradict the Puritan religion. Hawthorne tells the story through the eyes of a Puritan…

    • 772 Words
    • 4 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Good Essays

    In the story, Brown trusted his group was valid in their commitment to God. Moreover, Brown trusted he had a solid Puritan confidence. On his journey through the woods, he realized he wasn't as confident in his religion as he thought to be. In addition, the respectable individuals of the town were not who Brown expected them to be. The main character was gone up against with enticement, in which he would have a few opportunities to turn back, however his interest inevitably defeated him. "Youthful Goodman Brown" is a story speaking to individuals being stood up to with ordinary allurements. Nathaniel Hawthorne utilized setting, interior clash and imagery to depict the battle between Brown's sentiment vulnerability and the malice attempting to force him in. What made a short story great was what Poe defined as the "unity of effect". The "skillful literary artist" ought to construct a story to make a "preconceived effect". What Poe basically said was that short fiction should be composed in the way of a verse, it needed to be lyrical, and his is exactly what Hawthorne included in his…

    • 528 Words
    • 3 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Good Essays

    In Nathaniel Hawthorne's "Young Goodman Brown," the story is told through the eyes of a limited omniscient third-person narrator. This style is very accommodating to the story because it allows the author perfect opportunities to express his points. The narrator can both describe what Goodman Brown is doing, and also evaluate and comment on the characters actions. This is a tool of the author to use the narrator to express his own personal beliefs on mankind. The narrator possesses the capability of reading the thoughts and feelings of the protagonist, the young Puritan husband, Goodman Brown, only among all the characters. As Brown turns the corner at the meeting house, he thinks:…

    • 767 Words
    • 3 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Good Essays

    “The Young Goodman Brown” is a short story written by Nathaniel Hawthorne, published in 1835. Hawthorne is best known as an author of “The House of the Seven Gables”, “Twice-Told Tales,” and “The Scarlet Letter.” Author was born in the beginning of the nineteenth century in Salem, Massachusetts. His ancestors were involved in the witch trials. To be not recognized because of his family, he changed his last name from “Hathorne” to “Hawthorne.” The author had served as an American consul in the Great Britain. He died in 1864 in Plymouth, New Hampshire.…

    • 586 Words
    • 3 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Good Essays

    The name of the short story, “Young Goodman Brown” written by Nathaniel Hawthorne, becomes an ironic statement after reading the entire piece. The term “Goodman” literally translates to a man who possesses a higher standard of morality and goodwill. However, specific aspects of the short story mock the term and rather, it reveals non-Christian ideologies. The story begins with the protagonist, Goodman Brown, leaving his wife, Faith, to pursue a one-night journey. Already, a symbolism for Goodman’s morality and faith can be seen just through his wife’s name. The act of him leaving his “Faith” can foreshadow an ominous experience that Goodman will encounter during his journey. The line, “…she [Faith] spoke, there was trouble in her face, as if a dream had warned her…” on page 585, solidifies the ominous foreshadow to be encountered by Goodman. Another line in the story, “…felt himself justified in making more haste on his present evil purpose.”, provides insight onto what Goodman’s true intentions are, and adds an ironic tone to the protagonist’s name.…

    • 613 Words
    • 3 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Good Essays

    This story starts off on the streets of Salem Village. Goodman Brown is saying goodbye to his wife before he departs into the woods to do his job. Although it is unclear as to what it is he is doing exactly, Faith, Browns wife knows its nothing of good nature. Goodman tells her that he must only travel this one night and he reminds her to pray for him, for if she does she will receive no harm. Feeling guilty as he walks away from her, he promises himself that he will become a better man after this night is over. He sets off on his journey into the forest and unexpectedly sees a man on the road. Weary of everything, Goodman Brown…

    • 2034 Words
    • 9 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Good Essays

    The gloom Young Goodman Brown is feeling from the truth he discovers during the night is completely justified. How could it not be after such a traumatic experience? His entire image of the world around him was shattered. The people he new and looked up to, were not what he spent his life believing them to be. There are many passages by Young Goodman Brown that portray these thoughts, feeling, loss of innocence, and changes to his perception in the short story by Nathaniel Hawthorne.…

    • 656 Words
    • 3 Pages
    Good Essays